These engineers are actual ex-Tesla technicians, so it's a bit more than half-assing it.
And I'm one that is for right to repair, I just don't think it holds up for the lease scenario, I expect my repairs to be done to manufacturers spec and would be concerned about any mechanic for any make making "half arsed" repairs.
They disabled it because they thought they knew better and that the cable would never fail in the way they thought it would.
Spoiler: it didn't.
But: it did in a completely different way they were not aware was possible.
I'm sorry you couldn't see the similarity. Obviously it is a less likely to cause ten deaths scenario, but how do you know it won't?
If they were disabling this car’s airbags or ABS to solve a different issue, this would be a good comparison. But they’re just not the same at all.
To fix panel damage on jet airliners, instead of replacing half the skin, they usually just rivet a patch over the hole. Or in the case of the composite-skinned Boeing 787, they basically glue a patch over it [1].
Sometimes they don't even bother with that, and just tape it up instead [2].
[1] https://www.aviationpros.com/aircraft/commercial-airline/new...